US Navy guided-missile destroyers are playing a central role in the military blockade of Iranian ports, alongside a diverse mix of American warships and combat aircraft.
Speaking at the Pentagon on Thursday, the top US general said the Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class destroyers are the “backbone” of the surface fleet and singled out their role in the blockade.
“It is the sports car of the United States Navy,” Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters.
Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, crewed by around 300 sailors, are packed with firepower, including nearly 100 vertical launch cells for a mix of air-defense and strike missiles. They also field deck guns for surface threats and embark combat helicopters, giving them the ability to track, target, and engage threats across air and sea.
“Far and away, the most important weapon on board these ships is the American sailor,” Caine said, adding later that the destroyers are “run by the youngest sailors in our surface warfare navy.” The helmsmen, tasked with steering the warships, may be as young as 18, he said.
The Pentagon has not disclosed the specific number of destroyers involved in the ongoing blockade, but it said more than a dozen warships are participating. Among those are the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli, both of which are carrying embarked fighter jets.
Dozens of surveillance aircraft, refueling planes, and drones are also involved in enforcing the blockade, preventing merchant vessels from entering or leaving Iranian ports and straining Iran’s maritime economy.
US Central Command, which oversees American military operations in the Middle East, said the destroyer USS Spruance on Tuesday had “successfully redirected” an Iranian-flagged cargo vessel that tried to evade the blockade.
CENTCOM said on Thursday that 14 vessels have turned around to comply with the blockade since it began on Monday.
US troops have not yet boarded any vessels in the Middle East. Caine said that American forces beyond the region will pursue Iranian-flagged vessels trying to provide “material support” to Tehran, including those carrying sanctioned oil.
The naval blockade came after the US and Iran reached a tenuous ceasefire to end more than a month of war. It stands to reduce critical oil revenue, on which Tehran is dependent, and further strain its struggling economy.
Shortly before the blockade began on Monday, the US military said it started “setting conditions” for clearing Iranian mines in the Strait of Hormuz. It sent two destroyers through the strategic waterway last weekend.
With the blockade and mine-clearing operations, the US has entered a risky new phase in its war with Iran, which remains armed with fast-attack boats and anti-ship missiles that could threaten American warships involved in the missions.
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